OUTBOUND : new and bolder sound from Asian Sensation CHRISTIAN BAUTISTA

Christian Bautista is one of the few artists whose life I have followed. From his humble beginning in a talent search till he was given the chance in the music industry which he grasped for stardom. I was one of the many Filipinos who cheered for him. Such was sadness when I felt that his career somewhat slowed down thereby making him less and less visible on tv only to find out that he and his parent company Universal Record was cooking something somewhere else. He emerged as the ASIAN SENSATION due to his success in another SouthEast Asian country being Indonesia.

There's no stopping Christian Bautista, aside from Indonesia, his gaining recognition in neighboring countries as well, in Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore. And now, the Asian sensation is making drastic changes. Expect him with new and bolder sounds with his latest album under Universal Record entitled OUTBOUND

OUTBOUND : new and bolder sound from Asian Sensation Christian Bautista

I was one of the bloggers invited last weekend in Universal Records Tower Quezon Ave. to get the chance to interview Christian Bautista. It was my first time to see and meet him so I was really surprised at how humorous this guy is in person. We keep laughing at every questions we throw at him. Despite his many achievements, this guy remains humble and thankful for all the blessings.

Christian Bautista starred in his first International Film "A Special Symphony". He is part of the first Pan-Asian musical tv series " The Kitchen Musical".  He is also the only recording artist to receive a 4x Platinum Record Award for Romance Revisited: The love songs of Jose Mari Chan. He worked with Jim Brickman, One Way, and fronted for concerts  of K-Pop sensations Rain and 2NE1. He also topbilled jampacked concerts here and abroad. He also has numerous endorsements including the latest being BLACKBERRY, billboards all over the Metro and has consistently won numerous awards and citations. Need I say more?

Today, Asian Sensation Christian Bautista adds another feather in his cap with his FIRST INTERNATIONAL album : OUTBOUND.

OUTBOUND features Christian’s collaboration with music producers and artists he met and worked with from the United States, Korea, Japan, Singapore, and Indonesia.“It’s the first time that we want to try and attempt to do more outside the country. "--said Christian Bautista

And for some reasons, this excites me. To my knowledge, no Filipino has taken this path in the past, Who would have thought an artist from the Philippines would break through the Indonesian market and beyond? 

The album consists of eight songs which is a good mix of slow and upbeat ballads. The first single All That’s Left offers Christian’s new, bolder sound, and further proves that he is more than just a balladeer.While taping for The Kitchen Musical, Christian never stopped to get in touch with some of the region’s movers in the music industry until he met  Tat Tong , composer of the anthemic All That’s Left.

Tat’s other masterpieces-original songs in Outbound include What Can I Do and his masterful arrangement on Christian’s cover of George Michael’s Faith, which is very special for Christian because it was used in his first big solo number in The Kitchen Musical.

Aside from Christian’s collaborations with Tat, Outbound gathers its noteworthy works with Grammy-nominated multi-platinum instrumentalist Jim Brickman for Never Far Away, the K-Pop R&B trioOne Way for Wrong Number, Indonesian songwriter Satrio for the hit song I’m Already King, and with Avex Japan’s amazing Baby M for the lovely duet Sakura.

Christian’s music videos always feature familiar and beautiful female celebrities: from Anne Curtis, Georgina Wilson, Solenn Heusaff and Angel Locsin(in Beautiful Girl) to Cristine Reyes  (in I Remember The Girl) to Paula Taylor (in Tell Me Your Name) to Carmen Soo (in Afraid for Love to Fade) to Angelica Panganiban (in Nakaraang Pasko) to Sarah Geronimo  (in Please Be Careful With My Heart).  All That’s Left, it features CosPlay Queen  Alodia Gosiengfiao.

And while it’s apparent that Outbound has drawn him out of his comfort zone, Christian admits that it does not mean he will stop being a balladeer.

“For this album talaga kasi medyo half-half. Half experimental, half-medyo ballad pa rin naman siya. [And] Easy listening pa rin naman. Pero definitely I’m not going to drop the ballads,” he says, smiling. “Kasi siyempre, nagsimula ako sa ballads and du’n naman talaga ako kumportable. So hindi ko p’wedeng iwanan talaga ‘yun.”

TRACKLISTING:

1. All That’s Left

2. Unphotographable

3. Faith

4. I’m Already King

5. What Can I do

6. Never Far Away

7. Wrong Number

8. Sakura

As a performer, Christian believes he’s improved, but he’s not reached his peak. “Honestly, I do feel that I’m at my best so far.  I just hope I’m not at my best.”

He adds, “ As I continue this journey, I have reached another turn on the road ahead. This is the right time to pursue new paths and directions. And there is no better way to begin this new and exciting phase than to share my latest work with you. With your support and a personal sense of renewed energy and devotion, I am ready to face the challenge of the future.”

Outbound is out now in all major record bars nationwide under UNIVERSAL RECORDS.

FREE Christian Bautista “ALL THAT’S LEFT” Ringback Tone! For GLOBE users text UD344 and send to 2332. For SMART users text FALT and send to 2728. Text GetSong[space]6151903 to 2728 for SUN users (P15 for 15 days).

Thanks Universal Record for the Bloggers Conference, Pinoy Magazine and official online partner ORANGE MAGAZINE TV.

FOLLOW CHRISTIAN BAUTISTA:
Christian Bautista Facebook Fanpage: http://www.facebook.com/xianbautista
Christian Bautista Twitter: http://twitter.com/xtianbautista
The Kitchen Musical Facebook Fanpage: http://www.facebook.com/TKMOfficial

__________________________